Editor's
Note
S.O.S.
(Solving our shortage)
A
call for combined efforts of health care industries, education
system
Carol Bradley, MSN,
RN, California Editor
March
12 , 2001
Amid
the flurry of reports, white papers, monographs and lists
of recommendations, it's clear that the nursing shortage
has suddenly become everyone's top priority. Everyone with
something to say–enlightening or not–has felt
compelled to weigh in on this subject. Sometimes, too much
attention can be harmful. True to form, I have heard much
of the same old quick-fix thinking emerge. To that, let's
just say thanks but no thanks.
When
compared to other states, however, California has it bad–very
bad. Only Nevada is worse. The number of nurses per capita
in California (544) is far less than the national figure
of 782 and less than half of other states–such as Massachusetts
at 1,200–that are known for their strong nursing education
pipelines.
Within
California, the rural areas such as the Central Valley,
with fewer than 500 nurses per capita, are much worse off
than San Francisco, with more than 1,000. Contrary to some
voices in this state, this is about far more than improving
the work environment, although that needs some major work,
too. It also is not about nurses selling real estate or
working in other industries. Actually, the most recently
reported employment level of California nurses in nursing
is quite high–83 percent in 1997.
Although
many have come late to this party, the nursing crisis has
been brewing for some time. Many health care organizations
have been experiencing increasing bed closures or service
curtailments due to staffing shortages for more than a year.
Anyone who continues to tell you that California has enough
nurses has a different agenda in mind.
It is
time that nurses (with a little help from our friends) solve
the nursing education gap in California. I am convinced
that local creative initiatives that involve practice and
education will improve nursing enrollments–not the
well-meaning but short-term quick fixes.
Some
of these local initiatives already are under way in many
parts of the state, such as San Diego and Orange County.
These efforts are important because they are about the nursing
community coming together to promote "value investments"
in nursing education. They also require a long-term perspective.
This shortage has been 20 years in coming, so six months
of focus will not give us solutions that will endure.
As a
nurse, you can help by making sure that your employer is
ready with the checkbook and, even more important, with
the political influence to improve the resources directed
to nursing education. Beyond employers, let's also go after
those companies and industries that make a living off health
care. They should be called upon to help, too.
Unions
representing nurses should be called upon to help with resources
and political influence. I am still hopeful that our colleagues
from the medical community will come forward to aid and
assist us as well. High-tech professionals and teachers
have received their share of legislative largesse, so let's
see a commitment to nursing education.
When
you compare California with states that have more and better-educated
nurses, one aspect stands out: Our nursing education resources
are not adequate to meet the need, especially in generic
bachelor's programs. The nursing community should call upon
the University of California system to build bachelor's
degree nursing programs across their campuses. If the UC
system started with just one for every medical school/teaching
hospital it has, that would not seem like too much to ask.
Last
but not least, let's put our heads and hearts together and
create a different image of nursing by first taking responsibility
for the one that exists today and then doing something to
change it. I am not sure what the answer is, but perhaps
I'll know it when I see it.
